By Sunnie Rock, Recruitment Marketing Business Partner, Platforms & Services Sector

What’s more important than support from a company who is committed to your career and opportunities to work with leading experts? Having the support of your sister. Emily, (Engineer Intern) and Katrina (Data Science Intern), share their journey at BAE Systems and how they support each other every day.

How did you both begin working at BAE Systems?

Emily: I learned about BAE Systems through a friend that was interning here. I applied and started my first internship in 2019 and returned in 2020. With graduation approaching this May, I knew I wanted to stay with the company. While I was looking for a post-graduation position, I ended up finding a perfect position for Katrina.

Katrina: This was something new for me. I’m the oldest and my little sister got me the job. Once I got here, I soon realized that Emily’s reputation was great and the pressure was on to live up to it. It’s not every day that the older sister is trying to fill the shoes of her little sister.

Do you work together or cross paths during the day?

Emily: Although we don’t work closely together, we do act as a support system for one another by having our virtual work sessions each morning to get our day started.

Katrina: We don’t work on any projects together, but Emily has been a helpful resource to me as a new employee learning the ropes. Since working remotely due to COVID-19, I’ve enjoyed our morning chats since we aren’t in the office and able to ask each other about our weekends or evenings while getting coffee.

What has been your experience so far?

Emily: I’ve had great mentors and managers and have been doing work beyond the typical intern role as time goes on. I’ve learned a lot from our leaders. Not just technical skills, but professional ones like how to organize data and effectively communicate.

Katrina: Let me brag on Emily a bit because she won’t. Emily was leading a big project and had to give a one-hour presentation to a group of 30+ people. She was super nervous and I felt like a parent who wanted to watch a child’s big game.

Emily: Katrina was pretty invested in my project, too. She was a great sounding board for me. It was a lot of work, but I had support from my manager and team. It was a great learning experience.

Katrina: For me though, our team is fairly new and I wanted to develop a team tool to help our work. I went to my team to see if they were interested in trying something new and they were very open to it. It’s cool to be a part of building something new for BAE Systems.

Is there any particular moment that stands out to you?

Emily: My first internship year I was experiencing imposter syndrome and had self-doubt thinking I wasn’t ready. Ray Banuelos, my first mentor during my first internship, empowered me and helped build my confidence as an engineer. Colleen Budde from my current team really know what she’s doing and I admire her work and professionalism. I want to be where she is someday, and I am always taking notes on how she runs meetings, organizes data, and shows up as a well-rounded engineer.

Katrina: I’ve worked other places, but nothing like BAE Systems. I align with the company values and the positive culture. When they advocate for a healthy “work-life balance” they actually mean it. As a doctoral student, BAE Systems has been flexible with my schedule, which is extremely important to me, as my education is a top priority. It’s easy to get siloed in graduate work, but working here has been a great opportunity to learn things through working with people and technologies, all while maintaining a balance between school and work.

What’s next?

Emily: I graduate in early May and am happy to say I start full-time as a mechanical engineer with BAE Systems.

Katrina: I will stay on as an intern while I continue working towards my doctorate.

The best part of my job is meeting our employees and hearing their stories – each one is unique. It’s authentic stories like these that help drive my efforts as a Recruitment Marketing Business Partner to connect the right candidates with the right positions.